Welcome to the Piano World Piano ForumsOver 2 million posts about pianos, digital pianos, and all types of keyboard instruments
Join the World's Largest Community of Piano Lovers
(it's free)
It's Fun to Play the Piano ... Please Pass It On!

I was there the last week of a month's stay by Kurt Weissman, our head rebuilder.

What a spectacular place to visit. I thought I knew music history, but.... to walk where Mozart walked, to see what Brahms saw, to drink coffee at a cafe where Liszt hung out... this was awesome!!

Das Bosendorfer cafe is on Bosendorferstrasse. This is a cute little sandwich shop where you can get coffee or a beer or a glass of wine. It is not affiliated with the piano in any way, except that it is on the street named for the instrument. I wanted to eat here, but simply did not have time.

Just in case you thought I was teasing you, there IS a Bosendorferstrasse.

The Musikverein is Austria's version of Carnegie Hall. Musicians and ensembles from the world over perform here today, as did Johann Strauss and Liszt.

At the Salon Bosendorfer (located inside of the Musikverein) pianists meet and congregate. There are occasionally "meet the artist" type receptions here and there is a kitchen, wonderful coffee, and even better pianos on display there all the time.

At the Salon, I met my friend Simon Oss, who has recently been promoted to manager of most of Europe. (I am truly not clear on exactly which countries he is involved with, so Simon, if you see this, please fill us in). He is a fine gentleman and had fantastic coffee waiting for us when we arrived.

The church on Karlplatz, one of the historic plazas complete with fountains and almost nightly outdoor concerts. Sorry, I cannot remember its name, but it sher is perty!

Kurt Weissman, our head rebuilder, just spent a month at Bosendorfer. He was learning, but also teaching (which is waayy cool). Here we are examining some wood that is aging naturally. Bosendorfer never uses a kiln as it can "bruise" the natural characteristics of wood.

Here Kurt and I are standing with Bosendorfer's new president, Mr. Sakei. The woman with us is my sister Beth, who came with me as my wife could not.

Here are a few more images. First, back to the factory. Some have said in the past that the Bosendorfer factory spends more time on their plates than most manufacturers do on their entire piano. There is truth in that statement.

Here is a plate that has been sanded and prepped and has coats of sealant on it. Where ever you see some color other than the yellow primer, there was a blemish or uneven area in the finish. The worker was working with a chamois at the time, polishing the points where all of the struts meet so it would have a completely even surface.

Next, coats of finish are applied. You are seeing the finish being wetsanded. Again, they are trying to achieve the smoothes possible finish. This has absolutely nothing to do with tone.

Bosendorfer has a removable Capo D'Astro bar. This "pressure bar" keeps the treble strings under the optimal tension to achieve the finest sound possible in the treble. This much is common in many brands of pianos. As the piano ages, however, the treble strings can cut into the plate which compromises the termination point in this section. The Capo bar can be replaced if this happens, instead of shaving it down with a file, which is the only option on most other pianos.

Here we examine the rim and posts of a frame that is being completed. This body is entirely made of soundboard quality white spruce.

Speaking of soundboard quality white spruce, here is a board about to be installed into a piano.

Trivia question[/b]:

What model Bosie is this soundboard going into? Is it going into a normal run model or a CS series? Why did you choose your answer??

Just a couple more really cool pics. This is St. Stephens, that is basically surrounded by Vienna:

After going up almost 400 steps in a tiny little circular staircase, you are treated to this view from the spire:

This is the interior of the Royal Austrian Library. It is quite beautiful. Unfortunately we could not touch any of the books. I was dying to page through a few.

In the Museum of Ancient Musical Instruments I had a few favorites as well. This is a portable reed organ. Your friend stands at the opposite end and pumps the bellows while you play. When you are done, just close it up, fold over the cover, latch it, and carry it home like a briefcase:

Lastly, the Natural Science Museum. This is the main staircase - all marble and adorned with sculptures of many of history's greatest scientists:

Whew! This was a fantastic trip. I suggest a PW tour of some European piano factory next year. There are great fringe benefits!!

Thanks Rich. I'm hopeful that the Yamaha-Boesendorfer tie-up will secure the long-term viability of Boesendorfer. I still have wonderful memories of the ravishing Imperial I used to occasionally play on when at university.